Case Study: Arcona + Yosemite National Park
The creation of the National Park System (NPS) in the United States is recognized as one of the greatest land preservation acts in history. The foresight to preserve natural land and historic sites for future generations has created priceless
One of the crown jewels of the NPS, Yosemite National Park, was protected in 1864 and features natural treasures like Half Dome, El Capitan, and Yosemite Falls. The truth is that Yosemite was almost lost to development before it could be saved.
Saving its natural beauty means that there is also fewer services provided, less educational opportunity, and less chance for alternative forms of recreation. All of which fall within the mission of the NPS Service.
The National Park Service preserves unimpaired the natural and
cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the
enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations.
Augmented Reality Enhances Land Without Development
Augmented Reality (AR) is a technology that superimposes a computer-generated image on a user's view of the real world, providing a combination of real and virtual. These images are viewed through phones, tablets, or special goggles.
A blockchain based project named Arcona is an augmented reality layer that is anchored to physical geocoordinates on Earth. Arcona will allow the user to purchase land on the AR layer that is tied to the physical world.
In the case of Yosemite NP, Arcona would allow users to purchase the augmented reality layer that is linked to Yosemite National Park. This land virtual land could be developed and provide the +4 million annual visitors with educational exhibits anywhere in the park. This would allow the National Park to better fulfill their mission of providing education, enjoyment, and recreation of preserved lands without the need for physical development.
A concessionaire could create a living scene in Yosemite Valley showing what it looked like during different stages, or superimpose the creation of Half-dome onto the real physical object.
These features could be developed into an app that uses the Arcona AR layer as its base. The app could include virtual hiking signs, peak locators, navigation to services, and advertising to lodging, and restaurants. Local businesses could also pay to advertise in unobtrusive portions of the virtual layer.
The park experience can be completely made over without any physical development.
People Already Visit Yosemite
This is very true. As I mentioned Yosemite has been receiving over 4 million visitors annually. With growing numbers of visitors, there is a growing need for Park Rangers, especially interpretive Rangers that provide outreach and education.
A well constructed AR based education system could take the pressure off the Park Rangers and also get people to explore areas of the park that are underutilized.
In addition, research has shown that parks with fewer services attract fewer visitors. Many of the parks offering fewer services do so because of the tight regulations on development and land preservation. Adding AR based services and programs to these parks, especially those nearby like Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Park, would help disperse the crowds even more.
Land Owners Can "Build" From Anywhere
All of this can be created without setting foot in Yosemite. The Arcona team has the technology to link physical and virtual using geospatial data that allows remote sensing to generate digital elevation models.
This technology built by their related company Pilgrim XXI has built-in AI that can construct textured virtual 3D landscapes in high detail and has been used to create over 8 AR theme parks.
Summary
This is just an example of how the augmented reality layer being developed by Arcona could enhance a national treasure, making it more valuable to the consumer and the owner. In order to purchase land in the Arcona ecosystem, you have to use Arcona tokens.
Initially, Arcona will focus on mapping metropolitan areas and should have the 10 largest completed in 2019. As their AR layer progresses around the globe we can hope that they do work to include global natural treasures.
Form More Information
📅ICO Date: Ends May 15, 2018
📈Token Ticker: Arcona
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I would love to visit Yosemite or Yellow Stone someday. I remember deciding between Yellow Stone and Puerto Rico during one college spring break... I guess you can tell which one a college student had picked. ;)
Perhaps now when I go to one of the two parks, the experience would be even better than the one possible when I was in college because Arcona might be at play there.
You could possibly buy the land, lease it out, then visit both the physical and AR versions when you get there.
Imagine in Puerto Rico if you could view some of the battles that occurred at Castillo San Cristobal, or view what it would look like if it were a hub of activity as it were in the 1500s. One of the neat uses of Arcona and AR is "time travel" when visiting historical sites.